International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women

Today marks the 39th year celebrating the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. This day, founded in 1981 by women’s right activists, demands attention to the occurrence of gender-based violence across the globe. In 2020, gender-based violence remains a salient issue. It has become increasingly urgent to address gender-based violence, specifically domestic violence, since the start of COVID-19. 

Although the day was first recognized in 1981, the need to have a conversation about gender-based violence is still an important one in 2020. Today, women still bear the brunt of intimate partner and family‐related homicide. Additionally, the protections against such forms of violence are still minimal in a number of places, since, “To date, only two out of three countries have outlawed domestic violence, while 37 countries worldwide still exempt rape perpetrators from prosecution if they are married to or eventually marry the victim and 49 countries currently have no laws protecting women from domestic violence.” Clearly, there is a need for increased awareness, research, and policy to protect women worldwide. 

The History Behind the Day

This need has been met with a number of actions by the United Nations over the past several decades. One such action, Resolution 48/104, was adopted on Dec. 20, 1993, by the General Assembly. Also known as the Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women, the resolution outlined a future of a world without gender-based violence.  

In Feb. 2000, the General Assembly adopted Resolution 54/134 which officially made today — Nov. 25th — the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. In doing so, the General Assembly also encouraged governments, international organizations, and NGOs to recognize the importance of reducing violence against women and organizing programming which raises awareness about the issue.  

Advocates and Organizers

In addition to overarching organizations like the United Nations and its General Assembly, it is important to recognize that grassroots organizing has also been central in reducing gender-based violence throughout the world. Women of color, and more specifically, Black Trans women, have been at the center of activism and organizing against gender-based violence.

Folks with these identities also experience some of the highest rates of gender-based violence (since multiple parts of their identities overlap in such a way that compounds the oppression they face) but yet, they are often overlooked in violence prevention spaces and initiatives. That is why it is so critical to recognize and give due credit to the folks who are organizing within their communities.

From organizers like Stormé DeLarverie to Marsha P. Johnson, Black and Queer activists have often been at the forefront of work that aims to reduce violence against marginalized populations, including their own. It is important that we know their names and stories too. For more information on how you can support Black Trans women, check out these demands. 

Progress Made in Reducing Violence against Women

According to UN Women, at least 155 countries have passed some laws addressing domestic violence, signaling important progress in the fight to eliminate violence against women. Many countries have additionally made efforts to address violence against women through programs that target early education, respectful relationships, and intervention with men and boys. With broader support for the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) and the 1993 UN Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women, the international system has moved to institute greater legal protections for women.

Support for these international laws is widespread, with 189 party states ratifying CEDAW. Notably, the United States is only a signatory, meaning CEDAW has no binding effect upon U.S. law. Widespread ratification of international laws surrounding the prevention of violence against women suggests that regional and global norms about women’s rights have changed for the better in the past forty years.

Many countries have also adopted even more ambitious goals to curb gender-based violence. These policy goals include implementing programs to support survivors of violence, collecting more precise data on instances of violence against women, and reforming domestic attitudes and behaviors that enable the persistence of gender-based violence.

Challenges to Eliminating Gender-Based Violence

Although progress on this issue is promising, there are several lingering challenges that must be addressed to eliminate violence against women. Policies which seek to prevent domestic and intimate partner violence are relatively widespread, but other types of violence against women still need to be addressed. Female genital mutilation (FGM), trafficking of women and girls, and forced child marriages are all still widely practiced. In the 75th session of the UN General Assembly, which took place earlier this year, these lingering issues were heavily scrutinized and discussed. 

There are several countries in West Africa where more than nine out of ten women under the age of 49 have experienced female genital mutilation. In 2019, the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs found that one in five women globally between the ages of 20 and 24 were married before the age of 18. These staggering statistics reflect that violence against women persists in pernicious forms throughout the world, even as we make progress to eliminate some of forms of gender-based violence.

Outside of these acts of violence that impact individuals, violence against women also systematically targets female legislators. Roughly 82 percent of women parliamentarians have reported experiencing psychological violence, including sexual harassment, death and rape threats, and sexist remarks while in office. This issue highlights the need for even greater women’s representation in office so that female legislators can advocate for laws that seek to eliminate violence against women.

COVID-19 and Violence against Women

Gender-based violence during the COVID-19 pandemic is also an especially vital challenge to address. Rates of domestic violence and intimate partner violence have risen as a result of the pandemic forcing people to stay home, making it harder for victims of violence to seek outside help while having to remain in close quarters with their abusers. Calls to domestic violence services and resources in some places have dropped, even though rates of violence have increased, due to victims lacking the opportunities to safely and privately seek this necessary help.

Known as the Shadow Pandemic, this increase in domestic and intimate partner violence during COVID-19 is alarming to those who seek to eliminate violence against women. While many of the efforts already in place to address domestic violence can help reduce the prevalence of this violence, it is important to consider additional ways to serve women at risk during the pandemic. Specifically, advocates should take action to prioritize essential services like shelter and support for women survivors, as well as to provide the economic support and stimulus packages needed for broader recovery after the pandemic.

Future Goals for the Movement

Over the course of the 39 years that the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women has been celebrated, we have seen substantial progress toward this goal. Improvements in domestic and international legal protections, as well as shifting norms about the treatment of women demonstrate that steps are being made toward the future envisioned by the UN.

A world without gender-based violence is possible. Countries must continue to support domestic and international policies that mitigate and eliminate violence against women. As individuals, we can lend our support to the activists and organizations that champion an end to gender-based violence through programs that provide resources to survivors, advocating for domestic policies that address gender-based violence, and pushing for changes in attitudes and behavior in our own communities through educating others about the persistence of this violence.

This article was written by Grace and Shareen.